My encounter with the Kathmandu police

So, I am just hanging out in Kathmandu, awaiting a permit for my next trek. But as is the case in Nepal, you never really know what they mean when they say it. Perhaps I will get a permit. Perhaps I won't. I've been waiting for a week now so I'm starting to get impatient. Hopefully I will be able to post some news on my next adventure soon.

But for now, I have been kind of stalling in Kathmandu. Staying at the Pilgrim's Guest House in the Thamel district (the tourist neighborhood), they have welcomed me like family. They notice when I come and go and ask a lot of questions. Sometimes this is a good thing. Sometimes, it's not. That's another story.

But I digress... during my stalling in Kathmandu I have met a really wonderful Dutch woman named Gerdien (say "HAIR-deen" with a hard H like German). She's volunteering at the orphanage where I considered working, but have decided not to because the timing just doesn't work out. It's a blessing to meet her because she's easy going, funny, really friendly and adventurous. We've spent a few days hanging out in Kathmandu together, exploring neighborhoods and the sights. Last night, I met her at a restaurant near my guest house for a cheap, delicious dinner. We're dining with a guy from Australia that she's met. Everything is going along great, I'm getting travel tips from the Aussie and the lights go out. (This is a daily happening in Nepal, usually for about 3 hours at a time.) Nothing unusual. About two minutes pass and then the staff comes around and lights a candle at our table. About twenty minutes later, Gerdien goes to grab something out of her backpack, and it's gone.

Shit. We're freaked out. We're the only white people in the restaurant. The staff speaks a little English, but they don't seem very concerned about the missing bag. We call Som (I can not say enough nice things about my Nepali big brother) and he rushes to the rescue! Som calls Pilgrim's Guest House and they send two English speaking staff down to the restaurant to try to help us locate the missing bag, and to communicate the situation and what we have seen (which, unfortunately, is not much.) Her bag contained just about everything important (camera, credit card, bank card, sunglasses, money, address book, etc.) but fortunately, her passport is safe at home.

Som recommends that we NOT call the police as they are really good for nothing. But the staff from Pilgrim's says that it can't hurt, and we agree. Thirty minutes later (thank God no one is hurt) we are told that we need to walk to the Metro Police station about 10 minutes away to file our report. We arrive, and no one seems concerned. Our escort is asking questions, but they seem more concerned with who he is and why he is with two Western women. He's a member of the lower caste so they quiz him endlessly. It seems for at least the first five minutes there is no discussion of the missing bag.

A few minutes later we are just standing around. Just waiting. For what, we do not know. Then a truck arrives. It is a king cab truck with a canvas canopy over the back. We are told to get in the back of the truck. I'm not kidding, there were TEN police officers in the truck with us. And, thankfully, our escort from Pilgrims. We drive the long way through busy Thamel (as if to make a statement that the police really DO do something) and then arrive at the restaurant. Along the way, I decide that I have to break out my camera and take some photos. At first they are hesitant, and then they start posing for photos. Here's a few good ones...

The cops were hardly what you would call imposing or intimidating, as you can see. They all want to look at their image on my camera as soon as they are taken.

At McDonal's Fast Food Restaurant (really, this is what it's called), all ten police officers go inside and then emerge a few minutes later and say, "Well, your bag isn't inside." Of course it's not. Two hours have passed since the incident so it's not surprising that the bag has made a getaway. We're all certain that it was a staff person from the restaurant who took it. Total bummer. It's important to note that we are asked to come back the next day (today) to file our report. That's why we visited in the first place...

Today, we have spent the ENTIRE day dealing with the hassles of losing everything. Visiting the Dutch Embassy. Cancelling credit cards. Calling banks to get new cards issued. Calling her parents to wire the money. Getting the lock to her room at the orphanage opened (the key was in the bag.)

At the embassy, the officer there tells us to visit her friend who is a businessperson near the restaurant in question. He's buff, and well respected in the neighborhood. If he thinks they are bad and took the bag, maybe they will surrender the bag (minus the money, about $100 dollars which she's offered as a "reward"). We're going to try this Mob tactic a little later today.

A wasted day, but we both recognize that we are safe and healthy. Inconvenienced for certain, but glad to be together to walk through this stressful, crazy day. Thank heavens for friends in faraway places...